House passes 'No More Solyndras'

House Republicans approved legislation Friday aimed at reining in the Energy Department’s loan guarantee program, bringing the GOP’s 18-month Solyndra investigation to an end and bolstering the party’s energy messaging going into the election.

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It’s a big win for House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.), the authors of the bill.

The lawmakers, along with other top House Republicans, have spent more than a year shining a spotlight on Solyndra, the California solar panel manufacturer that went bankrupt last year after receiving a $535 million loan guarantee from the Obama administration. And they’ve lobbed pointed allegations at the White House and the DOE, asserting that officials backed renewable energy companies to please Obama’s campaign donors.

The administration strongly denies those allegations, and Republicans have been unable to prove them, though they have uncovered embarrassing emails that show officials raising red flags about Solyndra, as well as connections between Obama supporters and people tied to the company. Claims of “crony capitalism” have become a regular feature of Republican campaign ads and stump speeches.

There is almost no chance the Senate will take up the legislation, and it would most likely face a veto from President Barack Obama, though the White House did not issue a formal statement of administration policy on the bill.

While the bill should have been an easy home run for the GOP, it faced resistance from conservative groups and some Republican lawmakers along the way.

The bill does not immediately end the loan guarantee program. It blocks the DOE from approving loan guarantee applications submitted in 2012 and beyond, but allows approval of applications submitted by Dec. 31, 2011.

Conservative groups, including the Heritage Foundation and the Competitive Enterprise Institute, take issue with the provision allowing approval of some loan guarantees, arguing the bill should kill the program outright.

“It’s a great goal, but there are flaws,” William Yeatman, assistant director of the Center for Energy and Environment at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, told reporters earlier this week.

At least one Republican echoed the groups’ frustrations.

“This measure would still put taxpayers on the hook to loan out billions of dollars more to at least 50 additional shady alternative energy schemes that were submitted before January 1,” Rep. Tom McClintock, a California Republican, said on the House floor Thursday, adding that the bill should be renamed “The 50 More Solyndras and Then We’ll Stop Wasting Your Money — Really — We Promise Act.”

McClintock ultimately decided to vote in favor of the bill, telling POLITICO Thursday that he supports the goals of the legislation.

Republican supporters of the bill defended their decision not to block approval of all loan guarantees. They argued that doing so would be unfair to companies that have been offered conditional commitments by the DOE.

“We have 50 companies that have presented applications to the Department of Energy. They’ve spent a lot of money, so to just cut it off right now would basically be unfair,” Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.) said on the floor.

We do not swear an oath to support, defend, and "BELONG TO" the government...

We swear an oath to support and defend the CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES which is the instrument we all agree to that LIMITS and CONTROLS the amount of power government can assert over a free people.

Democrats clearly want some version of Soviet style totalitarianism. They want, nay, DEMAND that Americans swear oaths of allegiance to the Democrat party and its far Left Wing political ideology.

The frightening Democrat attitude, reminiscent of Stalinist style Cult of Personality, believing that Americans "BELONG TO" the government and are property of the government and that any rights that Americans have come from the government - instead of from God and nature...

...it's a clear warning sign that in the future people will say: "why didn't those idiot ancestors of ours see such plain evidence in front of their noses"

Since these pretend politicians care so much about waste, why don't they go after the 100's of Billions of waste in the US Military, thats where most of the waste is, but I know they will never touch that.

So, a program started under Bush/Republicans ( Solyndra) fails under president Obama because China artificially suppresses the market, by subsidizing silicon and the Republicans use that excuse to kill an overall successful policy ( Solyndra was only 0.01% of energy investments) that has created hundreds of thousand of jobs at a rate higher than the fossil fuel industry, which enjoys hundreds of millions in tax subsidies the solar /wind companies can only dream of. Using failed Republican policies to bash the president and kill more jobs. Who in their right mind votes for Republicans?

Cronyism is the most insidious form of corruption. The problem is non-partisan and systemic. Consider a recent civil (non-criminal) federal court case in Texas. In this case, the judge and his friends threatened the litigant (the "victim") with "death" and seized, without any notice or hearing, prohibited him from hiring a lawyer, and essentially into a bizarre civil lockdown. The litigant has been under this civil lockdown order for nearly two years, and is prohibited from having a lawyer, from owning any possessions, from freely traveling, from working, etc… The judge redistributed the litigants property to the judge's friends.

http://LawInjustice.com... has details about this disturbing case and some quotes from the judge:

THE COURT: "I'm telling you don't screw with me. You are a fool, a fool, a fool, a fool to screw with a federal judge, and if you don't understand that, I can make you understand it. I have the force of the Navy, Army, Marines and Navy behind me."

THE COURT: "You realize that order is an order of the Court. So any failure to comply with that order is contempt, punishable by lots of dollars, punishable by possible jail, death"

Did these clowns then pass the "No More Iraq Wars Bill"? Let me tell you Republicans who have your heads still stuck in the sands of the Middle East - I have a 4.14 kW solar panel system on the roof of my house and it's the future of this country! Renewable energy systems like solar are going to put fossil fuel companies out of business!!!

The reason you're going to lose this November is because you're married to a petro-economic model that's going down like the Titanic. Wake up already. The cake is baked, shut up and eat it....

Keep the $400Billion in oil subsidies and providing GOVT protection in the Middle East for the US Oil Cartel, but hey - those "energy" jobs are corrupt. Why do the fish in the Gulf have 2 heads and the birds - no feathers?? Don't worry - eat up, we cleaned it!!

Federal loan guarantee programs typically run at very low cost to taxpayers. On average, every $1 allocated to loan and guarantee programs generates more than $99 of economic activity from individuals, businesses, nonprofits, and state and local government.

The current budgetary impact of these programs is about 94 cents per $100 loaned or guaranteed.

House Republicans pretend to care about the budget, but they don't actually do anything about it. Instead, they shill for Big Oil, and target renewable energy programs as if there was something anti-American about them. But they're not fooling anyone (except maybe their deluded tea party base).

BHO's record: Unemployment 8.1%. National debt soaring over $16T. Record poverty level not seen since the 1960's. Anemic "growth" at 1.5%. Food stamp rolls rise to record level. Median middle class income down. Welfare work requirement gutted. "Food insecurity" afflicting 14.9 million households (approximately 50 million persons). Signals of weakness in the Middle East encourage anti-American violence. BHO has failed. Time to give someone else a chance to lead.

The Dems' problem is that they suffer from an enthusiasm deficit compared to the Repubs. Despite some crass pandering, BHO has not been able to ignite his base. Therefore, Plan B is to discourage Repub voters -- and thus reel in the enthusiasm deficit. That's why we've been treated to this onslaught of "Romney has already lost" nonsense. Problem for the Dems is that Repub voters don't find credible the channels that Dems are using to deliver their propaganda. BHO's post-convention bounce is already dissipating, and by the end of September Romney will be at least even, perhaps drawing ahead.

This means nothing. President Obama has shown that he has no regard for our laws or for our constitution, and our Congress has shown that they have no stomach for trying to stop his usurpation of authority. As long as Obama is President, Congress may as well go on permanent vacation.

So, Jack Hays, I was better off four years ago when the economy was tanking under President Bush?

Please explain.

Also, everything you list is everything President Obama did in response to the economic downturn at the end of the Bush years. He woudn't have had to spend any of that money if Bush could have handed him a solid economy. Your mess... can't blame Obama for doing his best to clean it up.

So, Jack Hays, I was better off four years ago when the economy was tanking under President Bush?

Please explain.

Only you know whether you were better off. BHO's "recovery" has been more damaging than most recessions. If BHO had done as well in his first term as GWB did in his then BHO's reelection would not be in doubt. As it is, his failure puts his tenure in jeopardy.

BHO's record: Unemployment 8.1%. National debt soaring over $16T. Record poverty level not seen since the 1960's. Anemic "growth" at 1.5%. Food stamp rolls rise to record level. Median middle class income down. Welfare work requirement gutted. "Food insecurity" afflicting 14.9 million households (approximately 50 million persons). Signals of weakness in the Middle East encourage anti-American violence. BHO has failed. Time to give someone else a chance to lead.

NO MORE OBAMA! NO MORE BIASED LIB PRESS. - NO MORE OBAMA - NO MORE OF HIS HEALTH CARE. HE GOVERNED AGAINST THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE. AND NOW THE WHOLE WORLD HATES HIM. THE WORLD IS ON FIRE AND OUR COUNTRY MEN ARE DEAD - BECAUSE OF OBLAMEO. And Politico finds fault with Romney and Ryan ????